


Shut Up and Dance

by Karuka_Ikashi



Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-23
Updated: 2015-08-23
Packaged: 2018-04-16 19:14:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,591
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4637016
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Karuka_Ikashi/pseuds/Karuka_Ikashi
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Chiara is dragged to a Disco Night by her sister, along with her sister’s boyfriend and his brother.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Shut Up and Dance

Chiara knew that she shouldn’t have come. The music was loud, the people were annoying…Why had she let Siena talk her into this again? When her sister had invited her out to Disco Night at the dance club, she hadn’t thought it would be an extended invitation. She had wanted some time alone with the other girl, time that was precious hard to come by these days since her sister had started dating that German boy, Ludwig. It seemed like Siena barely had time for her anymore, which was the only reason why Chiara had eventually agreed to come out with her. If she had known Ludwig had been invited too, she would have most definitely refused. The elder sister had a feeling that Siena knew this however, and that was exactly the reason why she had not been told.

“Come on, Chiara! This is going to be fun!”

Chiara leaned against the wall, crossing her arms. She was upset enough as it was. It didn’t help that not only had Ludwig joined them at disco, but he had brought along his older brother, Gilbert, too. They were at the refreshments bar right now, getting some drinks for the girls.

“I can’t believe you didn’t tell me they were both coming!” Chiara snapped at her sister. “You know how annoying I think Gilbert is…”

“He’s not!” Siena protested with a frown. “He just really likes you! He told me!”

Chiara groaned.

“He’s so obnoxious! If I have to listen to him talk about how awesome he is one more time, I swear, I’m going to just take a cab home! I’m being serious!”

“Don’t say that…He came all the way here just to see you.”

“That makes it worse!”

Siena sighed. She wrapped her arms around her sister and hugged her close.

“Come on,  _sorella_ ,” she pleaded. “Just give him a chance for a little while? If you do, I’ll buy you all the gelato you want tomorrow!”

Chiara frowned.

“Don’t try to bribe me with food, stupid.”

“Pleeeease?”

“No.”

“It’ll be strawberry.”

Silence.

“…Fine. One hour. But if he annoys me too much before that, I’m leaving! It’s not worth any amount of dessert to listen to his bragging and ‘chick’ jokes all night.”

“Fair enough,” Siena sang and walked over to accept a drink from Ludwig.

Chiara didn’t move from her spot, but that didn’t stop Gilbert from coming over and offering her a cocktail. She refused, waving him off.

“No, thanks.”

“Aww, come on,  _bella_. Don’t you want to loosen up a bit before we hit the dance floor?”

Chiara scowled at him.

“First of all, don’t ever call me ‘ _bella_ ’ again. Second, I’m not hitting anything with you. Go find someone else.”

Gilbert only grinned at her.

“Who else would I want to dance with but you?”

Chiara blushed. As irritating as Gilbert was, she couldn’t help but feel a bit flattered by the attention. She would never admit to it, though. Encouraging the other would just make matters worse. Heavens forbid Gilbert think she thought he was as charming as he proclaimed himself to be.

“Listen, just because my sister is dating your brother doesn’t mean I have any interest in copying her. I’m only here because I thought I’d get to spend some time with her alone.”

“Tch. So salty…”

“ _What_ did you say?”

Gilbert raised a hand in defense.

“Hey, I’m not any happier about it than you are. Well, maybe a little. Okay, a lot. Siena’s a nice girl. But since then, I can’t get West to do anything with me! I was surprised he even brought me along! I’ve been bugging him for weeks to hang out, but he has no time.”

Chiara’s frown softened a bit as she actually began to feel a bit sorry for him. She knew what it was like, getting pushed to a lower priority. For Siena now, it was always “Ludwig this” and “Ludwig that,” “You’ll never believe what Ludwig did today!” Chiara couldn’t stand it.

“Sounds like I’m not the only one being ignored,” she huffed.

“That’s why we gotta stick together!” Gilbert insisted. “I’m not asking you to go out with me. But can’t we at least keep each other company at a thing like this?”

Chiara groaned. She wasn’t sure if hanging out with Gilbert was better than being alone, but at least, at the moment, it would make her look like less of a loser at the disco.

“ _Fine._  But no touching. And no bad jokes. I don’t want to have to listen to them on top of everything.”

She turned her head to see where her sister had gone off to. There she was, standing on the edge of the dance floor, one hand on Ludwig’s shoulder, the other holding her drink. As her boyfriend lowered his head, Siena stood on her tiptoes and pressed her lips against his. Chiara ripped her eyes away, feeling like she was going to gag.

“Gimme that,” she demanded and swiped the cocktail out of Gilbert’s hand.

As the night progressed, Chiara kept an eye on the clock, counting down the time when she would be free to leave. She and Gilbert went out onto the dance floor and moved separately, facing each other, but Chiara kept her eyes averted. She had not had nearly enough to drink for this. This was for Siena, she tried to remind herself. As long as her sister thought she was having a good time, Chiara wouldn’t have to feel guilty, and the two of them could go out tomorrow and get some gelato and finally have some time to themselves. Yes, it sounded like a good enough plan.

With only fifteen minutes left, Chiara’s mood improved. She looked behind her for Siena and saw the girl dancing only a few feet away, grinning in her direction. Ludwig looked away nervously, and Chiara threw him a warning glare, her most common facial expression for him. Most people told her that Ludwig was not so bad. He was honest and hardworking, dedicated to following the rules and being efficient. Chiara thought that he was the biggest bore ever. The fact that he had stolen her sister’s heart didn’t make sense to her- what did Siena possibly see in him? Their personalities were so different that Chiara was surprised she had fallen for him at all. _“But, sorella, he’s so sweet!”_ Ugh…No amount of sweetness would stop her from taking a hit on him if he ever hurt her baby sister.

She was snapped out of her thoughts by Siena calling to her.

“Chiara! Come on! You’re making your ancestors cry with those moves!”

“Shut up!” she snapped back. “You’re no better!”

“Is it the shoes?” Siena teased, spinning closer. “Because you look like you have two left feet.”

“I’ll stomp on your toes if you keep calling me a bad dancer…”

“But I’ve seen you do so much better,” her sister whined. “Don’t let Gil think you’re a failuuuure…”

“Zip it! And YOU! Stop smiling!” she growled, pointing at Gilbert.

“Are you just gonna take that?” her dance partner asked, though he still continued to grin. “Why not prove her wrong?”

“I don’t need to prove anything!” Chiara told him angrily.

He shrugged and Siena laughed, letting Ludwig twirl her away, though Chiara could tell her sister was the one controlling most of the movement. Oh, how that brat got on her nerves. Chiara had been dancing before the other girl could even walk. Her confidence a bit shaken, she finally began to slow her movements and at last, made her way off the dance floor. Gilbert followed behind her, complaining.

“Hey, wait a minute! Are you really done already?”

“I’ve already stayed here as long as I agreed to!” Chiara told him, crossing her arms. “Now I’m bored and tired, and I just want to go home.”

“But they were going to start the contest soon! There’s a prize, but you need a partner to compete. Why not make it your last hurrah? Even someone as awesome as me can’t win by himself!”

Chiara scoffed.

“The ‘awesome you’ can dance with his own ego. I’m done for tonight. Goodbye.”

Just as she was about to walk towards the exit, the lighting of the room changed. It grew darker and the colored lights bounced off the disco ball hanging from the ceiling, causing Chiara to momentarily squint her eyes. The announcer’s voice came over the speaker, initiating the start of the dancing contest. Chiara could see Siena’s face light up as she yanked enthusiastically at Ludwig’s sleeve. The older sister grunted. That stupid potato-headed klutz couldn’t dance. Chiara knew she could do so much better, no matter who she was paired with. The fire of competition burned in her chest, but no, it just wasn’t worth it. She wouldn’t stick around to let Siena provoke her any further. She would go home and try to forget this whole night ever happened.

After Siena spotted her, however, Chiara felt her blood begin to boil. The other girl was grinning at her, hanging off of Ludwig and staring at her upside-down. Chiara read more from her face than the younger sister probably intended to show. She felt as if she was being mocked, and it didn’t help matters when the other girl’s tongue protruded out of her mouth just enough to give Chiara the final rise she needed to snap.

“Oh, that is  _it!_ ” she hissed. She marched back to Gilbert, yanked on his arm, and hauled him out onto the dance floor again.

“W-what?!” her partner shouted in surprise, but went along with her, not sure what was happening at all. This was the last thing he had expected. Chiara spun him around so that his back was to Siena and Ludwig, but he still tried to peek over his shoulder, seeing if his brother had any answers for this woman’s sudden change of heart.

“Oh, don’t you dare look at them!” Chiara snapped, reaching up with one hand to grab Gilbert’s chin and direct his gaze back in her direction. “Keep your eyes on me.”

“I like the sound of that,” Gilbert grinned. “But what was that rule against no touching?”

“Shut up,” Chiara told him, releasing his face. She took a hold of his hands and placed them where she wanted them, one on her hip and the other still held in hers beside them. “You better not suck at this.”

“You’d be surprised,” Gilbert answered, beginning to move his feet. Chiara followed him, but soon took the lead, directing most of their movement as the intro to the first song played.

It was hard for her to coordinate with someone she had never danced with before. What was worse was that Gilbert’s style of dancing was different than her own. It was hard for them to synch up, especially when Chiara was pushing him to dance the way she wanted him to. Discouraged, she let go of the other, wondering if it was better to just let him do his own thing and dance individually. Gilbert frowned in disappointment.

“What’s the matter? You’re gonna hold back now?”

“No, I just-”

“I thought we were doing alright! Come on! Just like this…”

He put up his arms and rolled his hips. Chiara made a face at him and shook her head, giving her own hips a thrust to the side. She coordinated her arms and legs to match the rest of her body and adopted the rhythm of the music. Her heart began to pound as she felt the excitement inside her build. The song was upbeat, making it more fun to dance to; as she got more into it, her shoulders rocked, and she nodded her head, sending her hair whipping through the air.

“That’s more like it!” Gilbert shouted to her, but Chiara’s first response was to grab his arm again.

“Shut up and dance with me!”

As she let her reservations go, dancing with him suddenly became a lot easier. They read each other’s movements and were better able to predict and copy them. Chiara stepped into Gilbert’s space, using his shoulder as support. He dipped her down and spun her back onto her feet. She stretched his arm and used it to pull herself back. Together, they found a pace stepping to-and-fro, their hands clasped as they swung their arms back and forth at the same time between them.

“Lean back!” Chiara directed, and Gilbert did. They held each other’s hands and spun together. Chiara couldn’t help it- a grin spread across her face as they both righted themselves to resume dancing, both of their steps a little sloppy with dizziness.

As the contest continued, though, Chiara forgot all about her previous desire to leave, caught up in that moment. She hardly even noticed that fewer and fewer couples remained on the dance floor as the judges began to tap off those that fell behind in the competition. Soon, it was only them, their siblings, and two other couples left dancing. Chiara turned her head and saw Siena’s face fall as she and Ludwig were at last, eliminated. Despite her elation, she couldn’t help but feel a bit sorry for her sister. Then, like it was nothing, the last song ended and the colored lights stopped. Cheering broke out among the crowd- Chiara’s heart thumped in her chest, and her eyes widened. There was only one bright beam of light left, and it was shining on her and Gilbert.

“Ladies and gentlemen, the winners of the Disco Night Contest!” the announcer shouted.

Chiara could hardly believe it. Gilbert raised her arm and whooped. A loud applause surrounded them, and Chiara could hear her sister shouting in the crowd.

“YOU DID IT, CHIARA! THAT’S MY SISTER!!!”

“We are AWESOME!” Gilbert shouted.

Chiara’s face turned a deep red, and she could feel her eyes begin to water. She had never won anything before in her life, and certainly hadn’t expected to emerge as a champion tonight with a partner she had never danced with and claimed to not even like. She was starting to feel a certain fondness for Gilbert now, however. After all, the two of them had just WON.

The judges awarded them each a trophy and a cash prize. They had their picture taken and were congratulated by a large crowd of strangers. Throughout all of it, Gilbert just couldn’t stop grinning. It was clear he was very pleased by all of the attention. He didn’t push himself on Chiara, however, or do anything that would make her uncomfortable, even when they were being treated as if they were a couple. As things died down, though, he was surprised to feel Chiara’s hand subtly slip into his.

“You weren’t too bad tonight,” she told him.

He grinned. “You weren’t yourself.”

“Don’t let it all go to your head, though. You know we won because I’m such a great dancer…”

“You’re great, and I’m awesome. That’s why we’re the perfect team!”

“I guess I can share some credit with you.”  

Chiara gave Gilbert’s hand a squeeze and let it go. Soon after, she accepted the praise she received from her sister and even Ludwig. Nothing could bring her down now. This night had turned out far better than she had expected, even with her expectations set low. And tomorrow, there would be gelato. No reason not to smile, at all.

 

**The End**


End file.
